Pages

Wednesday, November 9, 2016

Strange Rock Formations

Located close to the western coast of Madagascar, the Tsingy de Bemaraha reserve is a landscape of sharp limestone pinnacles called tsingy. The canyon of the Manambolo river and rolling hills cut through the tsingy creating a diverse landscape. The forests, lakes and mangrove swamps are the habitat for rare animals.

Cappadocia is one of the top attractions in Turkey. The town of Göreme is located among a large number of tuff cones, termed fairy chimneys. The fairy chimneys have been formed as the result of wind and water erosion of two different volcanic layers. A thick layer of tuff (consolidated volcanic ash) covered by a thin layer of basalt that is more resistant to erosion.

The Chocolate Hills consist of at least 1,268 individual mounds scattered throughout the interior of the island of Bohol in the Philippines. The almost symmetrical formations range from 30 to 50 meters (98 to 164 feet) high. During the dry season they turn brown. Geologists have not reached any consensus on how these giant mole hills were formed. One theory holds that the Chocolate Hills are the weathered rock formations of a kind of marine limestone on top of a impermeable layer of clay.

Located on the Northeast coast of Ireland, The Giant’s Causeway consists of basalt columns formed 50 to 60 million years ago. As volcanic activity pushed the basalt through chalk, the columns shot in vertical direction. As they cooled, they cracked forming a hexagonal shape. Although the columns rise up to 12 meters (36 feet) high, many of the columns have eroded until only the tops are visible. This creates an intricate cobblestone type natural walkway.

The Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah is a series of giant amphitheaters filled with colorful pinnacles. The natural rock formations were caused by wind and water erosion on limestone. The pinnacles are also known as hoodoos and reach up to 61 meters (200 feet) high.

Situated about 45 km north of the Farafra oasis in the vast Western Desert of Egypt, the White Desert is made of oddly shaped chalk formations. In clear contrast with the yellowish brown of the surrounding desert, the soft chalk material has been contoured into amazing shapes.